Insomnia
by crazykittymomma
Summary: Hiccup's worries and concerns lead him to dealing with long nights awake. One this particular night, Astrid finds him awake. This is a one-shot.


**I am back! It has been a long while. Season ended mid-July for team, and instead of my energy being poured into coaching, Aaron and I poured hours and hours into fixing our old home to place on the market. The day after we placed it onto the market, we had one showing and had accepted their offer. If all goes as hoped, we will have one mortgage again. Fingers crossed! **

**How I have missed writing! I have had some block here lately, but that was because I had so much on my mind. Then, I came up with this. I hope you like it!**

**...**

Hiccup's thumb was bleeding. Whenever he would hurt a finger or his hand, he'd always want to shove the injured piece of flesh into his mouth. He never really knew why. Something he probably started doing as a kid in his urgency to clean himself up when his father wasn't around. Usually, it was due to a burn at the forge or stoking the fire before heading to bed. Or, pulling that small piece of hangnail that continued to get caught on something out, still resulting in a painful throb.

Unfortunately, with the amount of blood protruding from his thumb it wouldn't have been a good idea. Pausing briefly to continue to examine the cut, panic flowed through him when he realized the blood was dripping down his hand and wrist. Needing to clean up his hand before it became worse, he placed his knife and clunk of wood onto his desk. He would have rushed off towards the kitchen if there wasn't one obstacle in his way.

Astrid was asleep across the room in their bed. He'd been able to hide his insomnia from her over the recent weeks. Although he wondered if she'd suspected, she never mentioned it to him. For all he felt she knew, he was crawling into bed with her just after she'd fallen asleep.

"Just need to finish reading these treaties," had become his usual line as he pretended to scan over a large stack of papers on his desk. Not long later, she would be asleep, and he would find himself staring absentmindedly at them, or becoming loss in a sketch, a list of duties to attend to, or, in tonight's case, whittling with pieces of wood still lying on the floor from their current construction projects.

Hiccup stood up and began to walk quietly across the wooden floor boards.

Drip-drip-drip.

Ugh! The blood was now dripping down his elbow and onto the floor. His mind raced. Two steps later the floor board creaked. He paused, and glanced over towards the bed. Astrid stirred slightly. Holding his breath, he waited until she seemed to settle herself down into a relaxing sleep again. A worrisome thought occurred to him. What if she woke up with him standing not far from the bed practically hovering over her? She'd probably yell in fright, then reach for her ax that leaned against the wall beside the bed.

Drip-drip-drip.

A few steps later, he was almost to the door. Turning back to Astrid's sleeping form, her back facing him, he slipped through the small crack in the doorway and finally was into their kitchen area. He was finally comprehending the warm trickle of blood that was oozing worse down his hand and arm. At the table he found their bucket of fresh drinking water. Hiccup pulled a goblet from beside the bucket and dipped it into the bucket of water. This way he wouldn't contaminate their drinking supply. Astrid had folded up some clean clothes and had conveniently left them in a pile on the table. Reaching for one, Hiccup pressed his bleeding thumb into it, wincing as he did.

Applying extra pressure to the wound nearly made him call out aloud for a second, but he knew he needed to keep himself hushed so not to wake Astrid. He also knew that he needed to get the bleeding to stop. He dipped the cloth into the water, began wiping the blood from his elbow and hand, then pressed it against his thumb again before another droplet could fall from the wound.

He sighed, defeated.

Glancing around in the dimly lit room, his eyes caught sight of the bowl of apples on the table.

"I forgot to eat again-" he sighed, realizing just how empty his stomach felt. Continuing to apply pressure to his thumb by squeezing it into his palm, he leaned forward and reached for a small apple. He knew if he didn't eat something with all the blood, he'd grow queasy. Chewing the first few bites felt like a chore, but he knew he'd feel better once he'd gotten something into his stomach.

A few minutes later, after about half of the apple was gone, he checked his thumb again. He winced when he realized it was still bleeding pretty heavily. Changing the rag around so that he had a fresh area to work with he pressed his thumb again into the coolness. He was sure to wrap his thumb up more more tightly than he'd had it previously.

Then, he heard the sound of footsteps behind him. They were faint at first. He almost thought he'd been hearing things - perhaps the wind outside blowing against a lose piece of wood. He felt a twinge of panic flood his veins when he heard more movement.

Astrid was out of bed. He turned towards the bedroom doorway, and a second later the door creaked open slightly, and there she stood staring at him with her tired blue eyes.

Silence hung between them for a moment. It felt piercing to Hiccup's nerves.

"You shouldn't be up," he said simply to her.

"Neither should you be," she said with a small huff. In her right hand he spotted the wooden piece he'd been carving into. He left hand was resting under the base of her boulder-sized belly.

She walked slowly towards the table and sat the piece of wood down in front of him. It clanked gently onto the table. For some reason he felt as though his hand had been smacked with her concern. He didn't like making her worry - especially right now.

He reached his foot under the table, feeling for the leg of the nearest chair. Hooking it, he pulled it closer towards him so that she could have a seat at his side.

She was so far along in the pregnancy she'd grown uncomfortable no matter what position she stood in, sat in, laid in...Her back and hips were bothering her the most. She didn't complain very often. Hiccup could tell she was trying to tough the last bit out as best as she could.

He saw her face grimace when she finally was able to sit down in her chair. She fixed her tan nightgown around her knees gently, recovering them up to keep them warm.

"You really shouldn't be out of bed," Hiccup said with a small sigh. Although, he decided not to fight her on the subject too much. He knew she was going stir-crazy being on bed rest. It had only been a week, but due to the swelling in her feet and legs his mother had thought it best.

"Just a little longer-" Valka had told them both that morning after giving Astrid a good look-over. She said this to them with an excited smile. "It won't be long."

After Astrid felt situated in her seat, she reached her hand across the table and motioned for his hand. Hiccup stared at her hard.

"There's no use keeping it from me," she said to him simply. "You've already trailed the blood from the desk across the house."

After another brief pause, she rolled her eyes at him and reached stubbornly across the table for his hand, forcing it gently into her palms. Her warmth comforted him a bit.

Unwrapping his thumb from the bloody cloth, he waited for her reaction. He saw her wince at the sight of it.

"How did you not cut your thumb off?" she asked him.

"Got lucky."

"Always." She replied to him, catching his eye, and Hiccup detected a small smirk on her face. Then, she looked back down at his thumb, wrapped it gently into the cloth again, and sighed. "It'll need stitched up."

This, Hiccup had already suspected as he'd watched the blood began to appear through the cloth already. Suddenly, he noticed Astrid motioning to get up, and he stopped her by grabbing her arm gently.

"I'll get it all - just sit, please."

Taking his stand, he felt his leg give a jolt of pain suddenly - he felt himself stagger slightly, and immediately hoped Astrid hadn't seen it. Again, he was up too late. Again, he'd been wearing the leg for far too long. Once he'd gather up whatever Astrid needed to stitch up his hand, the leg would be coming off. He could hobble around on his other leg for the remainder of the evening.

It didn't take long to gather up the items. Most of the items were kept in the same place - close to the hearth. The one remaining item was the mead. This was kept in a small barrel on another table. Grabbing another goblet from the table, he went and filled it up to near the brim, took a large swig for himself, and took his seat back with Astrid.

"Take the leg off," she said suddenly to him, sorting the items out along the table. Hiccup narrowed his eyes at her stubbornly. She was right, however.

"I was going to take it off once I took a seat," he said gently, leaning down and loosening the straps.

"I am sure you were," Astrid said simply. She didn't believe him. In fact, he hadn't believed himself when he mentally said he would. She was right. He liked to hide things from her...only when it came to making her worry.

She began washing the wound out with fresh water from the bucket, patted Hiccup's hand dry gently with a fresh cloth. Silence hung between them for a few minutes while she did this.

While she threaded the horsehair into the eye of the needle, she said, "How many nights have you been awake?"

The question didn't surprise Hiccup, although it used to give him anxiety. She'd known over the years there were periods of time that he couldn't sleep. Some nights, while living on the Edge especially, she would sneak down to his hut, seeing the candle still burning, to check on him. They'd be awake for hours talking about plans for the Edge, battle moves, training, and all kinds of other things. Occasionally, they'd have a flirtatious conversation, often making him question if she was just being funny or if she really did like him. This would happen until she'd catch him yawning, then she would take her leave to go back to her own hut. He always appreciated her company and helping him get his mind off of most bothersome subjects that filled his head.

It wasn't until they'd started seeing each other did she grow more concerned over his sleepless nights. Usually she'd wave it off, but there were days Hiccup would begin to doze during long flights, forcing Toothless to shoulder him back up into the saddle. This lead to Astrid keeping an extra eye on the two considering Toothless couldn't completely fly without his co-pilot.

And, now that New Berk was learning to live without dragons, creating a whole new home for themselves, Hiccup had started to becoming very restless. He'd often had a hard time turning his mind off, but even then he and Astrid would spend nights talking about discussing the new layouts of New Berk, where was best to place the new Great Hall, making preparations for their upcoming village meetings...Somehow Hiccup still found time to find sleep, even for just a few hours...

Until Astrid's pregnancy started to become concerning...

"Hiccup-"

Hiccup blinked quickly, Astrid bringing him back to reality once more.

"Ye-Yeah-"

"How many nights have you been awake?" she asked him. He saw she was holding the threaded needle between her pointer and thumb.

He didn't want to answer her. Truth was, he wasn't sure. A week? Two weeks? Four weeks?

"Let me rephrase this," Astrid said. "How much sleep have you gotten the last week?"

"Eh-two or three hours each night."

She shook her head. "How are you functioning?" He caught her studying his face. "I don't know how I missed it before-you're eyes-"

It was true. Hiccup had dark bags forming under his eyes over the last few days. Tuffnutt pointed this out to him when they were working on the roof to Valka's home that morning. Valka had overheard on the level below. Hiccup had managed to wave her off when she asked how he was doing and if he was ready for the new adventure.

Suddenly, Hiccup's thoughts diminished when he felt the mead being poured over his thumb, stinking it horribly. Biting the inside of his cheek to keep from calling out, Hiccup forced himself not to pull away from Astrid.

"How many are you thinking?" Hiccup asked her.

She surveyed the wound for a second.

"Five-six maybe," she said gently. "Ready?"

"I-yeah-" He was having second thoughts. "I could get Mom to-" He didn't want to keep her awake. It was bad enough she was out of bed, sitting at the table trying to stitch up his hand in the middle of the night.

Then, she poked him, causing him to jolt. He felt the thread pull through is flesh. Worst part was, she'd only just started. There were at least another half dozen pokes to go. His mother was much gentler than Astrid, but for some reason Astrid's stitching rarely left a noticeable scar. At this point, Hiccup would have rather had the scar. His stomach lurched slightly.

She poked him again, and this time he could tell she felt bad for poking him so deep.

"I'll try to do less -"

"It's okay, milady," he breathed. "I've been through worse."

Two pokes later, he saw her body suddenly grow rigid. Her back was bothering her already, he could tell. As she poked him again, his eyes fell onto her boulder-size belly. Astrid swore she had twins growing inside her with how crazy the little one's kicks were. But, Valka assured them both over and over again only one child was inside. From behind no one could tell Astrid was even pregnant. All her weight gain was primarily in her belly and slightly in her face from the extra liquid she was retaining.

"I know you are ready," Hiccup said gently to her.

Astrid rubbed the left side of her back with her fist. "I am," she sighed. "In a sense."

Hiccup looked down and realized she was nearly done with the stitch. His finger was still bleeding but not as bad as it had been previously.

His eyes fell back towards the wooden block he'd been cutting into just shy of an hour previously. He wanted to finish it. He had the urge to finish the piece right then and there. But, he knew once Astrid was done stitching him up she'd ask him to come lay down beside her.

Astrid caught him glancing at the wooden block.

"Something's bothering you," Astrid said to him gently.

"What makes you say that?" Hiccup asked her.

"Your insomnia tells me that. Plus, it's been a long time since you've whittled anything."

"I whittle," Hiccup protested before he watched Astrid cut the horsehair with a blade. "When I am at the forge-"

"It's been years since you've done anything like this," Astrid said to him. She picked up the block, and Hiccup watched her run her finger along the rough edges of the cuts. Astrid's thumb fell along an area, reminding Hiccup of the times he watched Astrid run her hand alongside Stormfly's jawline just a year and a half ago. Her thumb fell along the neckline, and Hiccup watched tears coming to her eyes, which surprised him.

"I miss her," Astrid said. She laughed slightly, setting the carving of the Nadder down on the table again. He watched her blink a few tears away. "Although, I think you need to put more definition onto her teeth-"

"How do you think I sliced my thumb open?" Hiccup asked Astrid, giving her a tired smile.

His wife laughed slightly, and he watched her wipe the dampness from her eyes with the bottom of her palm. She sniffed a little bit. Suddenly, she winced gently and her hand fell onto her belly.

"Astrid-" Hiccup edged forward over the table towards her, feeling panicked but Astrid waved him off. She sat for a moment holding the same spot on her belly, then she straightened back up as suddenly as she'd winced.

"Just a small one," she said with a tired sigh. "It passed."

Hiccup was to his foot, urging her to stand back up so he could get her back to bed.

"I'm capable-"

"I know you are," Hiccup said. "But you've been out of bed long enough. Mom didn't want you up too long at once."

"I'm fine, babe-"

Hiccup sighed and urged her to head back to the bedroom with him. Reapplying his prosthetic to his sore nub hurt, but he needed to help her back into their room. She grabbed his arm, leaning heavily onto his shoulder for support and slowly made their way back into the bedroom. Her warmth felt good against his skin, but he grew a little concerned. Was she always this warm as of late? Or was she getting sick? Why was he just realizing how warm she was?

"Hiccup," she said in a dreamy voice as he helped her sit down in bed.

"Yes?"

"I'm worried about you," she breathed. She patted the spot on the bed beside her, indicated she wanted him to sit down.

"I know you are," he said. "And you need to put you feet up-" Helping her get situated back against the pillows took a bit of time. Sitting up too much bothered her lower back. Leaning too far back just wasn't comfortable with how big of a baby she was carrying. After limping over to the desk, bringing the candle to the side table, he sat down beside her, leaning back into the pillows and pulling her closer to him.

Man, did she feel warm.

"Babe," Astrid said again.

"Hmmm?" Hiccup was starting to feel very sleepy now, out of no where.

"Your leg-" Astrid leaned forward to try to help him remove the prosthetic, but Hiccup sat back up and removed it himself, feeling relief wash over his stump again. It needed a good break from it's extention. Then, he blew the candle out, and after a few long minutes, they both seemed to have managed to get comfortable again, Hiccup leaning against Astrid's shoulder more so than usual.

"Hiccup-" Astrid said after a few minutes.

"Yes, milady?" Hiccup said gently.

"Why are you having a hard time sleeping?" she asked him quietly. She almost sounded scared to ask him.

Pulling her a little closer to her, rubbing her back gently as she leaned against him, he sighed.

"Just anxious," he said quietly. He could smell the lavender in her hair. "Nervous."

There was a pause.

"I am, too," she breathed. "I know how you get when you have too much on your mind."

"You do, do you?" he asked her.

"Mmmmm-hmmmm," she said.

"How?"

"For starters, you don't sleep. This I've known for years." She yawned into his neck. "You get a little more-edgy due to not sleeping-"

"No, I lose my patience with the twins on a daily basis-"

Astrid growled slightly. "You get snappy at most of us. Not just them."

A pause went between them.

"Do I get snappy with you?" he asked her.

Another pause.

"Rarely," Astrid breathed, and Hiccup could tell she was stifling another yawn. "But I take it better than others may."

Hiccup rubbed the base of Astrid's back gently with his fingertips. He was noticing the soreness pounding in his thumb gently, not sure why he was but he was.

"I'm sorry if I have snapped at you, A."

He felt her kiss his neck gently. "No worries."

It wasn't moments later, he could tell she had drifted off again into a light sleep. Her breathing became deeper. Not only did she feel strangely warm to him, but on top of her body heat and the heavy breathing, he was growing hot. He cautiously slipped his foot out from under the covers in hopes of catching a slight breeze to cool himself down.

Then, he thought he felt it. The slow tap on his stomach. A moment later, he felt it again. Suddenly, he understood what it was. Gently, he pressed his open hand up towards Astrid's belly, about where he thought he felt the kick. He waited, and suddenly another kick was felt on the inside of his hand. A small smile stretched along his face.

He loved feeling their child kick. Astrid had the pleasure, and often displeasure, of feeling the kicks all the time. Rarely into the evenings did he ever feel the gentle kicks. The baby was more active in the morning hours.

Suddenly, Hiccup realized just how late he'd been up. Glancing towards the window, he could see gentle rays of light beginning to flood through the cracks in the shutters. He sighed. The village would soon be waking up, if they weren't already. Which meant he would need to be up a present soon. He hadn't slept.

Astrid suddenly jerked, and he heard her wince slightly. This alarmed him.

"Astrid?" he said, realizing she was awake.

Her hand fell over his own, and she placed additional pressure over to top of her belly. Her body was becoming more rigid for a few long seconds. Then, she relaxed again and curled herself up against his shoulder more. He could feel some warm tears flowing from the top of her nose and onto his face.

"A-"

"Please stay with me," she breathed. "Don't go to the village."

This came out of no where. He hugged her a little more tightly as she seemed to be controlling some sobs.

"I won't leave you like this, Astrid," he said to her gently, pulling her closer to him. "You know this."

"I know," she said gently. "The pain is just getting worse - and if today is the day - I don't want the baby to come while you are across the island. I don't want to do this alone."

Brave and strong Astrid was crumbling in his arms. Hiccup forgot all about his tiredness, his duties to the island and the dozen promises he made to members of the village for the day. He remained in their home, comforting Astrid through the aches and pains that were becoming more constant. He'd held her hand as the contractions were getting more intense, laughed with her when he described her pains as "being tickled by the baby." Not long after that, she punched him in the arm.

"That's only the start of what this feels like," she said to him. She'd hit him harder in the past.

They dozed off. Hiccup limped to the kitchen for some fresh water for he and Astrid. They shared some bread and jam. Hiccup insisted she drink some goats milk, and they sat across from each other on the bed, although both tired and exhausted, talking about the days of the dragons while Hiccup whittled more on the block of wood.

"Don't forget about the spines-" Astrid said to him before a small wave of pain flooded through he belly once again. Although Hiccup became alarmed with each contraction, he tried to remain calm for Astrid.

Instead of everything else he should have been doing for the village, he stayed with Astrid. He was certain by mid-day someone would be looking for him. He half expected someone to pound on his front door while Astrid was resting peacefully through the pain. If they had he was prepared to cause a scene to prove his point.

Thankfully, no one came.

Hiccup only left to fetch his mother when her water broke. By evening, their daughter Zephyr was born. Only the Haddocks were present in the home when Zephyr arrived right as the sun kissed the sky good night. Valka was busy cleaning up their daughter, and Hiccup remained holding Astrid as she cried softly into the bend of his arm. He worried she was in immense pain. Her labor had not been easy.

It wasn't until Valka laid the now cleaned infant into Astrid's arm did he realize they were happy tears.

"Oh, she's beautiful," Astrid breathed.

Hiccup saw the light auburn hair peaking through the swaddled blanket. Zephyr had calmed finally when Astrid spoke to her. Hiccup could see Astrid's nose immediately once she'd calmed, yet she had his thin lips. All Hiccup could do was stare down at the small child they'd created together, happiness filling his body, along with the exhaustion from the day. He felt Astrid's head rest against his chest again, and he pulled her blanket up over her shoulder, making a mental note to have his mother obtain a clean one soon.

All he could do was hold his little family close, and wish Toothless, Stormfly, and his father had been able to be there to share the special moments with them.


End file.
